‘Prison Fighters’ Directed By Kansas Jayhawks Football Star

Prison Fighters: 5 Rounds to Freedom is a documentary about a controversial practice in Thailand’s criminal justice system whereby inmates can earn a royal pardon by winning a series of Muay Thai fights. Muay Thai, a violent martial art entwined with religious belief is considered “a national obsession.” The film follows inmate Noy Khaopan, a convicted murderer (he stabbed a man in the head) who has served the first five years of his sentence. Khaopan has been training for Muay Thai fights since he was eight. His motive to win a pardon is a reunion with his young son Don. One of the big questions addressed in the film is: Should there be such a privilege above the law?

The director of Prision Fighters: 5 Rounds to Freedom is American Micah Brown. The former track star and football player at the University of Kansas is known for his game-saving catch of a fake punt in the 2008 Orange Bowl, the Kansas Jayhawks’ first BCS Championship. After graduating from college, Brown produced an all-access web series for Kansas Football called The Gridiron. It won two Emmy Awards for Best Regularly Scheduled Sports Program. Prison Fighters: 5 Rounds to Freedom premieres on Showtime on Friday, February 24 at 8:30pm.

Prison Fighters: 5 Rounds to Freedom is a documentary about a controversial practice in Thailand’s criminal justice system whereby inmates can earn a royal pardon by winning a series of Muay Thai fights. Muay Thai, a violent martial art entwined with religious belief is considered “a national obsession.” The film follows inmate Noy Khaopan, a...